“A Few Haiku (29)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry36 Comments

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#169)

my unsettled thoughts
blanket my winter world
in restless stasis

…..

(#170)

winter’s bitter dirge
prelude to spring’s soliloquy
hope waits in the wings

…..

(#171)

from womb to tomb
winter’s ever-present shroud
white cloak of despair

…..

(#172)

heaven’s secrets
whispered in the hiss of rain
on elm leaves

…..

(#173)

to those whose stories
go unheard by dearth of care
nature lends her ear

…..

(#174)

all hope is not lost
though harsh winter batters me
the golden suisen

“A Few Haiku (28)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry33 Comments

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#163)

old apples
frozen to the ground
the silent orchard

…..

(#164)

juniper berries
blue sky’s children nestle
in cedar cradles

…..

(#165)

my horse is old
and my cart is broken
the depths of winter

…..

(#166)

winter granary
rice sacks are empty
and spring may never come

…..

(#167)

thoughtless chickadees
bear the winter’s burden
while I succumb

…..

(#168)

in the evening snow
hare tracks on the mountain path
silent, soon to fade

“Delicate Arch & La Sal Mountains”

On By Mike U.In Photography37 Comments
Delicate Arch & La Sal Mts., Arches Natl. Park, SE Utah (c) Mike Utley

NP12-1(S)—World-famous Delicate Arch, Arches National Park, SE Utah. This is probably the most iconic spot of the Colorado Plateau, which covers a great portion of the Four Corners area (Utah, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico). Delicate Arch is simply incredible and is the most photographed and most famous natural arch in the world. There was no color manipulation here—this is exactly what Delicate Arch looked like that evening when the warm light of the setting sun struck the orange sandstone. It was literally breath-taking. (Canon gear, Fuji Velvia ISO 50)

“Autumn Colors & Early Snow”

On By Mike U.In Photography40 Comments
Autumn Colors & Early Snow, near Groundhog Reservoir, SW Colorado (c) Mike Utley

FC4-1(S)—Autumn Colors & Early Snow, near Groundhog Reservoir, SW Colorado. Groundhog Reservoir is one of my favorite locations. You can achieve perfect mirror-image reflections of the Lone Cone on its surface at times. Most people go there to fish, hunt or camp, but I always went there to work on photography. The roads are not maintained in the winter months, so it’s only accessible during the summer and fall. This image was made on the way to the reservoir and gives a good idea of what it’s like in my general area. (Canon gear, Fuji Velvia ISO 50)

“A Few Haiku (27)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry40 Comments

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#157)

memories of her
drift on plains of sorrow
the driving snow

…..

(#158)

the withered forest
cruel winter shames the trees
into submission

…..

(#159)

the blush of winter
cold flirtatious wind kisses
my cheeks and nose

…..

(#160)

clear winter night
moon tends her silver garden
of star flowers

…..

(#161)

my personal winter
heart too deep in permafrost
for love’s healing thaw

…..

(#162)

cracks on pond ice
kintsugi heals frozen earth
as lotus slumber

“A Few Haiku (26)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry35 Comments

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#151)

drifting blizzard snow
not deep enough to inter
all the world’s sins

…..

(#152)

fallow field
without love and compassion
there can be no hope

…..

(#153)

the thresher’s flail
I am not yet able to
leave my past behind

…..

(#154)

iced boughs bend in shame
winter’s woe too bitter for
weeping willow’s tears

…..

(#155)

silent winter night
sound of my heart’s muffled cries
bereft of echoes

…..

(#156)

bitter reckoning
seeds of love in time shall meet
the harvester’s scythe

“A Few Haiku (25)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry28 Comments

(c) 2022 by Michael L. Utley

(#145)

whispers of the dead
desiccated teasel stalks
haunt the winter field

…..

(#146)

fuyu no shika
scornful mountains echo
mournful stag’s lament

…..

(#147)

in the end
my heart gropes in darkness
on life’s lonely path

…..

(#148)

jade remembrance
the hitch in my chest
as my heart shatters

…..

(#149)

barren winter field
this heart of mine
bereft of yours

…..

(#150)

in silence in shadows
cold earth trembles beneath
blanket of regrets

“A Few Haiku (24)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry21 Comments

(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley

(#139)

snow in hut shadow
bitter heart
refuses to melt

…..

(#140)

abandoned nest
filled with drifted snow
sorrow incubates

…..

(#141)

frozen tracks
my past waits for me
up the road

…..

(#142)

frigid pond
thirsty fox waits in the woods
as I break the ice

…..

(#143)

chilly winter breaths
heron, kitsune and I
speak common tongue

…..

(#144)

no sun no moon
earth in funeral wrappings
all hope is lost

“A Few Haiku (23)”

On By Mike U.In Poetry19 Comments

(c) 2021 by Michael L. Utley

(#133)

winter blizzard
mountain’s clouded mind confused
avalanche of thoughts

…..

(#134)

my life stains the page
complicated crimson kanji
too obscure to read

…..

(#135)

arctic kitsune
little blizzard stalks the drifts
crimson raicho plumes

…..

(#136)

darkest winter night
echoes of abandoned prayers
dwindle in the void

…..

(#137)

wind and sea and sky
permanence of change
impermanence of life

…..

(#138)

snow on footbridge
heron tracks the only sign
of life that matters